Galatians 2:15-21  ¹⁵ We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners;  ¹⁶ yet we know that a person is justified not by the works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ. And we have come to believe in Christ Jesus, so that we might be justified by faith in Christ, and not by doing the works of the law, because no one will be justified by the works of the law.  ¹⁷ But if, in our effort to be justified in Christ, we ourselves have been found to be sinners, is Christ then a servant of sin? Certainly not!  ¹⁸ But if I build up again the very things that I once tore down, then I demonstrate that I am a transgressor.  ¹⁹ For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ;  ²⁰ and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.  ²¹ I do not nullify the grace of God; for if justification comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing.

I had several comments yesterday about wanting to continue the relationship that we have between law and Gospel.  This relationship is primarily found in the Lutheran Church, and was a main theme for the reformers.  Yesterday I mentioned how for Martin Luther the Law seemed troublesome, and that he didn’t necessarily care for the beatitudes because he felt they were law heavy.   I went back and did some research, and found the three uses of the “law” as Martin Luther describes it in the Formula of Concord (which is part of the Book of Concord, also known as the Lutheran Confessions).   Article VI states:”

“[T]he Law was given to men for three reasons. . ."

1. that "thereby outward discipline might be maintained against wild, disobedient men [and that wild and intractable men might be restrained, as though by certain bars]"
2. that "men thereby may be led to the knowledge of their sins"
3. that "after they are regenerate. . .they might. . .have a fixed rule according to which they are to regulate and direct their whole life"

To sum up those three, it is:  curb,  mirror, and  guide

The primary concern and use of the law for Luther and the other early reformers was that they needed to maintain living under the law even after they had been regenerated by the Holy Spirit through the Gospel.  In other words, look at the law through the lens of the cross.  Jesus transforms all our views on the law, and while the law continues to teach us how to be holy, we have to be reminded that the grace of God through the Holy Spirit is what enables us to keep the law.  This brings in the controversy that still surrounds the third use of the law in the Lutheran church today (google “Lutheran third use of the law” to see what I am talking about).  That conversation is for another day though.

Finally, to give you a visual of the difference between law and Gospel, I offer you two links to famous reformation works of art.  Both are by Lucas Cranach the Elder, a close friend of Martin Luther.  The first is a woodcut that he did, and the second is a painting.  They have some similarities, but also some differences.  I hope that they help you in understanding the differences between law and Gospel. 

In our prayers this week:  Ann, Jane’s parents, and Scott

God’s Peace,